Rosemary West & Arnie Azaris
Green Wedges Coalition coordinators
Rosemary West & Arnie Azaris
Green Wedges Coalition coordinators
When Saturday 5 June 2010 – 12 noon
Along with the Planning Act Review and other recent changes to the planning regime (allegedly in the short-term economic interest), the draft changes to the state planning rules will weaken urban planning controls. This is despite the fact that current crises like peak oil and climate change demand MORE prescriptive regulation, not less, to actively focus development and new infrastructure on creating a more functional, sustainable city.
On 2nd February 2010, SOS lodged a critical submission with the Department of Planning on the Review of the State Planning Policy Framework.
To download the submission, click on the attachment below:
What’s missing is any future vision for the sustainable development of Melbourne. And in the words of the Municipal Association of Victoria, “the draft fails to acknowledge and strengthen local government’s roles in planning, creates risk and uncertainty for local government…”
SOS submission concludes that:-
The philosophical approach to this Draft has clearly been to “streamline” (deregulate) planning processes under the Act.
The timing of the review of the Act is unfortunate, coinciding as it does with the impact of severe bushfire and an economic recession. These appear to have influenced the focus of the review, while other more serious long-term crises such as climate change and peak oil have had less obvious influence. However, the new Act must be based on a sound ESD footing to be able to tackle the environmental challenges of the next few decades.
In a democracy (as opposed to an enlightened dictatorship) any area that is
underperforming needs tighter, more specific or more appropriate legislation, not a more hands-off approach. This has already been evident from the failure of the Melbourne 2030 policy to achieve its aim of focusing most new medium and higher density housing into activity centres, protecting most of the suburban hinterland and obviating the need for further suburban sprawl.
Industry and commerce will not produce the necessary vision and drive in the public interest when society is facing the need for urgent changes in land use patterns in order to respond to major challenges like climate change, peak oil, lack of affordable housing and inadequate well-integrated public transport.
In general, the Draft fails to identify or address any future sustainable vision for the state, yet proposes to undemocratically streamline or deregulate key authorization and approval processes. It also fails to address most of the existing loopholes and weaknesses in the Act, many of which we highlighted in our initial submission.
Click on the attachment to read the entire submission
Cllick on this Planning Department Practice Note to see what planning application documents residents are entitled to see and get copies of (at cost). Unfortunately some councils don't follow the Prac Note closely, but it does at least let you know what you're entitled to ask for.
If you have trouble getting copies of application documents and plans, or are being charged too much for them, let us know by phone or email – Click here to Contact SOS
Due to possible copyright issues with some documents incorporated in planning schemes (eg, reference documents like the ANZ Parking Standards), the Department of Planning and Community Development has temporarily withdrawn this Prac Note to make minor changes.
However, the Department says this won't effect access to the documents you'd normally need in a planning file.
DPCD says that the Practice Note should be back on their website "later in 2012".
For basic inquiries, download our Objectors' Guide for help in objecting to development applications at the council level and at VCAT. It explains how to determine your grounds of objection, how to deal with councils, making an appeal to VCAT, etc.
SOS also provides brief general planning advice as a service to our members and the public, through our Contact page and our FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section.
We don't have the resources to provide free detailed professional advice (such as a full analysis of plans or planning policies related to an individual development application), but if you contact us we can probably refer you to a planning professional or local community group for help.
Click on "Links" to find general planning information, the Planning Department, the Planning Tribunal (VCAT), community planning groups, politicians and the media.
Finally – don't be surprised to find out that councils don't always assess permit applications properly, and that state planning controls are full of loopholes. This is unfortunately why groups like SOS exist, as a necessary response in a democracy to the weakening and deregulation of town planning controls that are supposed to be there for the benefit of the wider community, not the short-term interests of developers and politicians.
For more on the failings of the discretionary planning regime in Victoria, see the Project Melbourne series of articles in the Age in early 2010, and the Auditor General's May 2008 report into Planning in Victoria (especially part 6: "78% of planning permit decisions are flawed").